Two Years On: Frustration
by edwalk86
Summary: Set two years on from the current anime, see where the characters of Naruto are now. This is a repost of chapter 1 from a short series of stories I did. Sometimes fun, sometimes sad. Anko


This is a repost of a chapter for my story Two Years On. I'm going to be posting the separate chapters in their own categories, after I do some revision on them. I'm doing this so I can apply a critical eye on my past work before starting a new story.

"Speaking current tense"

_"Speaking past tense"_

_Thinking current tense_

This is fanfic. I don't own Naruto.

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Two Years On - Frustration

Watching the Iwa ninja being devoured by her snakes, Anko couldn't believe how side-tracked her mission had become. Just yesterday she gets called to the Hokage Tower, where she gets given a glorified baby-sitting mission in her opinion, with Cranky-pants and Booze-hound as part of the squad. Then she's told that not only is her mission on the other side of the country, but that she also has only a week to get it done. A week!

_It'll take me a week to get over having to deal with these punks._

Then, while over-working the punks as they raced to their destination, she runs into half an Anbu squad, that as it turns out, seem to be a magnet for Iwa ninja.

_I swear, the only way things could get worse, is if Iwa's invading, and we're the only ninja within 100 miles that can fight them._

Recalling her snakes, Anko turned to see how the team was doing. Cranky pants was standing still, a small smirk of pride working its way onto his usually passive face, while his opponent, completely unmarked, lay on the ground twitching.

_I think it's time to mess with someone. _Before anyone could blink, a kunai was imbedded in the ninja's head, any movement from the ninja ending. Anko relaxed her stance, a devious smile forming on her face from the look Cranky-pants was giving her.

"What? He was moving." She taunted, and watching him, her smile only grew bigger. _Ha! He's annoyed. Great. He's so easy. I will admit though, he is good. He took down that ninja fast, and left him alive for capture. Definitely the 'prodigy' they claim him to be._

Switching her gaze to the other two members of her team, she saw the girl and Booze-hound talking. At least that's what it seemed like.

"Lee! Will you stop jumping around. We're on a mission. No games, okay?"

"But Tenten, I promised that if I could not beat him in 10 moves, I would do five hundred one-handed push-ups. It took eleven moves to beat him." Moving into position, Lee started doing the push-ups, while Tenten stood there ready to deliver her own _'punishment'_ on her over-enthusiastic teammate.

Casting her gaze around the area, Anko noted that the enemy that attacked Tenten was pinned to a tree some five metres from her position, several kunai and shuriken making him look like a pincushion as blood leaked out of his mouth and the several cuts he received from her. A little off to the right, another enemy was laying in a crumpled mess, bruising forming from the severe beating he took, several broken bones and a bit of blood completing the picture of the dead ninja.

_I guess these guys know what they're doing. They work good as a team and can take care of themselves. I suppose you'd have to with Guy as a sensei._ Thinking about the deceased sensei of Team Nine, Anko quickly cleared her head of such thoughts. _Now's not the time Anko. You've got a mission to rescue from the scrapheap._

"Alright brats, settle down. We're on a mission here. Gather any equipment that's still usable and form up!" Watching her team, Anko noted the demeanour the brats gave off. _'Cranky-pants is upset. Stuck up Hyuuga. The girl's pretty perky. Booze-hound looks upset at being stopped from completing his punishment. Definitely Guy's student.'_

Turning away from her team, Anko now focused on her latest two problems. While Anko and her team had had a little _'fun'_ with their enemies, it had seemed that the Anbu had quickly and quietly dispatched of the second squad of Iwa ninja's in the most boring way possible. With efficiency. What surprised her though was that while the Anbu captain, Eagle, was standing, obviously trying to shrug off possible signs of being exhausted, the other Anbu, Rabbit, was crouched downed breathing heavily.

This one's definitely a rookie. There's no way a regular Anbu would allow himself to be seen in such a position. Watching the rookie Anbu, Anko let the smirk on her face grow as the Anbu stood beside her captain, attempting to show as little the signs of exhaustion as possible._ Ah-hah! It looks like someone's gotten over their confidence problem. I wonder if Cranky-pants has realised who's standing before him yet?_

"MItarashi-san. Are you and your team alright?"

"Yeah, they're fine." Not even looking back at her team, Anko spoke to the Anbu captain. "How about your team, if you can even call it that?"

"We're fine." Noticing the finality in the captain's voice, Anko knew not to press the issue.

"So, care to explain the situation? After all, you helped us out, or is it the other way around, hmmm?" Moving closer to Eagle, Anko carefully watched the Anbu.

"Alright. I'll tell you the situation, seeing as how we helped you." Noting the slight change in the man's tone that usually came with someone talking down to you, Anko let it slide in exchange for the info.

Anko was a master at interrogation. Over the years she had acquired many skills that enabled her to read another person, be it the tone of their voice, or the subtle, or in some cases not so subtle, language of the body. Listening to the story the Eagle told, she found herself straining to _'read'_ this person.

_This man is good. He's as casual as can be, but he's not giving away a goddamn thing with his body language. And those damn masks. They're so frustrating! I can't see his face because of them, so I can't see the emotions running through his eyes. And I swear that it's changing the characteristics of his voice, slightly muffling it to make it harder to recognise. Damn it! I can't read him whatsoever, and I'm supposed to be Mitarashi Anko, the Snake Mistress, a master interrogator. And I can't even read the man in front of me._

Mentally berating herself, Anko continued to listen to the Anbu. It took her a few moments before she realised something however. Off to the right of the captain, Anko noticed the rookie Anbu fidget a bit. Focusing on the rookie for several seconds, Anko saw a pattern start to form.

_Well I'll be. _Watching the rookie while listening to the captain, Anko soon got the whole picture. _While what the captain said is mostly true, he's omitted a few parts, though whether they're important or not, I don't know._

"So, let me just recap." Taking a hugely exaggerated breath of air, Anko continued. "Basically you were sent on an important mission, which you accomplished. Then, on your way back to Konoha, you decided to camp out for the night, and while singing songs around the campfire you were ambushed by a squad of Iwa ninja, which we all know are a bunch of pansies that a genin squad could take out. Then, losing two of your squad to the pansies, you finally finished them off, but not content with that, you decided to race back to Konoha, with your tail between your legs, only to run into us, bringing more Iwa ninja with you. Did I leave anything out, or are you quite satisfied with that amount of screw-ups?"

Taking a breath, Anko waited for the response. _This should get a response that's more readable out of him. He might even slip up and give away some of the stuff he's hiding._

"M-Mitarashi-san." Before the rookie could continue, Anko noticed Eagle motion Rabbit to backup. Sensing danger, Anko leapt back several feet as the area ahead of her was enveloped in a cloud of dust, a loud impact occurring. Continuing to watch the disturbance as her and her team got into defensive positions, Anko grew tense as the dust cleared up to reveal the battered and bruised body of a dead Iwa ninja.

"What the!" Anko quickly scanned the area, trying to find the source of the dead body.

"Over there Mitarashi-san." Following the pointed finger of the Anbu captain, Anko spied another ninja standing on one of the upper tree branches of a nearby tree.

_How did he get that close without us noticing? _Looking at the mystery ninja, Anko noticed that nearly every part of him was covered. On his head he wore a bandana that covered his hair, his lower face masked similarly. He wore standard ninja gear, a long-sleeve shirt, jounin vest on top with wrapping and gloves covering his arms and hands. The belt he wore was standard, with two pouches attached to it, and he also sported a pouch on each leg, his pants extending down to his ninja sandals. All of it was black. He was dressed to remain unrecognisable.

"Now, now kiddies. Didn't your mother ever tell you to play nice?" Noting the playful tone in the mystery ninja's voice, what surprised Anko most was what she heard the rookie Anbu say in a mere whisper.

"Naruto-kun?"

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Reviews, comments, error correction welcome. Thanks for reading.

Also here's a quick little side-story to this chapter that I think will work best being posted here. Enjoy.

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"I am the beautiful Green Beast of Konoha, Rock Lee! I will defeat you in ten moves or I will perform five hundred one-handed pushups because of my unyouthfulness!" Watching the Iwa ninja stop in his advance as his comrades attacked the rest of Team Nine, confusion on his face, Lee took the opportunity to attack.

Shooting forward, Lee closed the gap in a heartbeat, his right fist sailing over the head of the ninja as he ducked under the first attack. _One._

The ninja, inside Lee's defence, made to punch Lee in the stomach, instead sliding back along the ground, his arms raised in a cross block from the quick knee kick that was used. _Two._

Placing both feet back on the ground, Lee returned to a ready stance, waiting for the Iwa ninja to make his attack. Growing tired of waiting as the rest of Team Nine engaged their opponents, Lee shot forward once again. Jumping after two steps, Lee spun in mid air, executing a spinning heel kick with his right leg on the ninja, the Iwa ninja blocking it with one arm, attempting to counterattack. _Three. _Continuing his momentum, Lee pulled back his right leg, dropping to the ground negating the Iwa ninja's counterattack as he spun in the opposite direction performing a leg sweep._ Four._

Falling sideways toward the ground from the sweep, his front exposed to attack, the Iwa ninja attempted to block as Lee took the opportunity to attack. Performing a twin punch on the ninja, Lee continued his assault as the Iwa ninja flew through the air, a straight punch in the chest, then a left hook to the head following into a spinning heel kick to the mid section, Lee using the momentum to hit the ninja in the head with a turning kick, finishing the combo with a jumping back kick to the stomach. _Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten!_

Watching the enemy ninja impact with a tree, Lee watched as the body of the ninja disappeared in a cloud of smoke as a chunk of wood replaced him. _Substitution!_

"Nice try, but not good enough." Hearing the Iwa ninja's voice behind him, Lee instinctively spun to the left of the ninja, a kunai in the ninja's right hand cutting across the right side of Lee's back as Lee delivered a left elbow strike to the side of the ninja's head, killing him instantly, the body flying through the air several feet from the impact before hitting the ground.

_Damn it, eleven! _Regarding the dead ninja for several seconds, Lee then jumped in the air adopting a victory pose as the rest of his team finished their opponent's. "Yosh! I defeated my opponent, but in eleven moves, not ten like I promised. I will now perform five hundred one-handed push ups to make up for my unyouthfulness!"


End file.
